Omicron live updates: New travel rules imposed in race to contain Covid variant – The National

Omicron live updates: New travel rules imposed in race to contain Covid variant – The National

Countries around the world are rushing to impose travel restrictions on southern Africa, where the new Omicron strain of the coronavirus was first detected.

Omicron – also known as B.1.1.529 – is a coronavirus strain with an unusually large number of mutations. The World Health Organisation declared it a variant of concern on Friday, after it caused a surge of cases in South Africa.

While countries including the UAE have imposed travel restrictions on southern Africa, Omicron has now also been detected in Australia, the UK, Germany, Israel, Italy and the Czech Republic.